A jumpscare for a cause: Freddy Fright Fest haunts downtown Fredericton

This year, the Freddy Fright Fest took place at Officer's Square in downtown Fredericton. (Brianna Lyttle/AQ)

During a chilly October night in Officer’s Square, a balloon entrance way and scare actors chase people around with roaring chainsaws. It was official, Freddy Fright Fest had made its fearsome return. 

Freddy Fright Fest has just wrapped up its fifth annual iteration. The event consisted of a haunted tour with regular and low scare options. 

Despite attempts to intimidate Fredericton residents, the true essence of the event is charity. 

Partnering with the Paramedic Association of New Brunswick’s Nightmare on Smythe Street, the funds raised from ticket sales went toward the Charlotte Street Arts Centre and Fredericton Hospice.

Inside the big white tents, the attendees encountered loud-screaming actors, disorienting strobe lights and fog, a floor that ranged from smooth and straight to slippery and sloped, making for a topsy-turvy experience.

Amidst middle schoolers huddled with their friends, middle-aged parents out for a night off and university students penning articles for their school newspaper, first-timers Daina Davis and Julia Pazano were waiting in line to get the full experience.

Davis, costumed as Wednesday Addams, said that she and Pazano had wanted to check out Freddy Fright Fest for years.

“Every year, we end up doing something else that’s not this. So this year, we finally decided to come,” she said.

Though Davis admitted she was “more of a Christmas girl,” both are fans of the spooky holiday.

“I just like that you can dress up and have fun,” said Pazano.

Davis was most excited for “the whole layout of it, because [she] was told last year they had a moving floor,” referring to a previous year in which a section of the tour used special effects to simulate the feeling of the floor dropping out from under one’s feet.

Though this section did not make a reappearance, the tour still had many tricks up its sleeve. 

One section was illuminated in green strobe lighting with fog swarming the room at hip level down, almost creating the sensation of having to swim out of the room. 

Another transported attendees into a haunted hospital, with one actor drenched in fake blood and screaming for mercy as another one carried on “experiments.” 

One particularly haunting section had flashing white lights while actors popped up to menacingly watch attendees struggle to orient themselves.

The end of the tour included the classic chainsaw carriers, with an actor running up to each attendee as they made their escape.

While the tour was considerably shorter than last year’s, which was held at the Capital Exhibit Centre, the small venue did everything in its power to pack a punch. 

Davis and Pazano said they were happy with the experience, laughing at a tagalong friend who screamed during the journey.